from Lisa Dillman of the Los Angeles Times,
Senior reporter Frank Seravalli of The Sports Network in Canada tweeted on Friday morning that he heard Brown had been told he would no longer be captain of the Kings, adding that the team wanted to go in a different direction.
Brown could not be reached for comment. A front office executive did not dispute the item but objected to an interpretation of the news, stating, via text, that Brown had not been “stripped” of anything.
The Kings, also, would not confirm if the new captain would be Kopitar, who would be starting an eight-year contract worth $80 million this upcoming season.
The change in captaincy, if it takes place, would be the first for the Kings since 2008, when Brown took over after Rob Blake signed with the Sharks as a free agent. Blake, now the Kings’ assistant general manager, finished his playing career in San Jose and took over the captaincy from Marleau with the Sharks in the 2009-10 season.
Brown’s leadership style during the Kings’ two Stanley Cup winning runs, in 2012 and 2014, was collaborative in nature. He had plenty of assistance from more vocal types such as Matt Greene, Jarret Stoll and Justin Williams, plus behind-the-scenes help from quieter leaders such as Jeff Carter and Mike Richards.
But with the Kings winning one playoff game the last two seasons, changes are inevitable, even cosmetic ones. Brown, 31, has been a bottom-six forward making top-six money: He has six years left on what was an eight-year, $47-million deal signed in 2013.
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